Holy Brooks Ravennas Batman! (and a Winner!)

OMG guys… the weather Friday was amazing!!! I told you I would get outside and if you follow me on Instagram, you know I stayed true to my word!! ;)  Tomorrow it’s supposed to be 65*!!  I’m super bummed though because I’m inside all day tomorrow working 14 hours! Ugh! Thursday, the day I can actually get outside again, is supposed to be 25*!!  How does that work?! for real!!  I LOVE being outside and just getting out Friday has improved my mental state and outlook on life after being stuck inside all winter long!!

Look guys… no gloves!! ;)

Look at this weather!!  It was absolutely glorious!! (Now this song is stuck in my head)

I was going to pull up some Garmin stats for you all, but somehow I misplaced my USB when we moved… hopefully I can find it!! You’ll just have to settle for pictures and taking my word for it! ;)

I RAN 2 MILES STRAIGHT… WITHOUT STOPPING!!!
Longest run post-injury with no pain to report!! I’m super pumped!!

Do you see that average pace?!! Holy Brooks Ravennas Batman!! Where did that come from?!
I’ve been running 11 something miles on the treadmill but Friday my pace per mile was:

Mile 1 – 9:54

Mile 2 – 10:37

I guess it just felt amazing to finally get outside again!!  Remember how I told you there are no hills where we moved??  Well Friday I even found a little hill to run up! ;)

Like I said… It’s tiny! ;)

After I got home, I stretched, foam rolled, and drank a green monster!  All the stretching, strengthening, yoga, and rolling I’ve been doing must be helping!!  There are some days when I feel a little ache in my knee, but nothing compared to how it used to be!! I’m so happy about the healing progress and pray that it continues to heal!! I’ve made a pact with myself that if at any point the pain comes back/gets worse I will immediately call the orthopedic doctor!! (hold me to it guys!!)

And now the moment I know you’ve been looking forward to… I know you skipped my post just to see if you were the winner!
Really guys??? Really?!!

It’s ok… I’ll forgive you! (this time)

Congrats Tessa B.!! You’ve won the Sprint Pack from Apera Bags!! Look for an email shortly!! :)

 

Are you recovering from an injury??

Do you prefer to run/workout inside or outside??

Do you stretch, foam roll, or stick after working out?

 

Friday Faves Hosted by Five for Friday

Hello R-Luckies!! Welcome to my Friday Faves brought to you by Five For Friday!! ;)

1. My Workout on Monday was probably one of my favorite workouts this year! Everything was just clicking and I felt great physically and mentally!

I warmed up by walking, then I ran 1.51 miles in 17:45 (11:45/mile)
I also did some other weights and stuff, but I was super happy with how I felt during the run!! I’m coming back people!!

 

I also held my longest handstand EVER!!! No wall!! Check it out on Instagram!!  I’m so proud of my 3 second handstand! haha!
If you’d like to see the video, just click on the picture below!

 

Then I came home and ate a favorite meal… chicken cordon bleu casserole with a salad and cottage cheese
while watching a favorite show… Wheel. of. fortune!!! (read that like they announce it on tv! haha)

  

2. My favorite giveaways right now and I’m not biased or anything lol ;)

3. The weather today is gorgeous!!! You better believe I’m getting out there today!!  My favorite workouts happen outside!!

4. Nuun is my favorite electrolyte drink and they just came out with their new Energy drink!
Why yes… I did just buy a sampler pack lol… I couldn’t help myself!! Look at that awesome bottle!

 

5. My favorite down time right now is watching Lost.  I finished season 1 of and can’t wait to get started on the 2nd season!!  Any Lost fans out there?

 

What are some of your favorites this week/weekend??!!

Longest Run Post Injury!! (video)

I’m home sick today… read BORED… so I’ve been working on improving my blog while having a Bachelor marathon…

I DVRd all of the episodes but haven’t been able to watch them until now… you may or may not be seeing a lot of blogging from me today ;) Be prepared to become best buds lol! 

This is from Tuesday night!!  I’m so excited!!! After being injured, this is the highlight of my week! My longest run post injury!
(I have no idea what happened with the quality of this video… sorry for the weird pauses)

I ended up running 1.60 miles in 19:45min (11:52 pace)… I miss my faster pace, but if I want to heal up and get back to running as much as I was before, I gotta take it SLLLOOOOWWWWW…
I’m happy to report there is ZERO knee pain going on up in here after this run!! :)

Have you ever come back from an injury?
How did you cope?
Do you watch The Bachelor? What do you think of this season?

 

Friday Favorites – That Hill is 10.9 out of 5?!

Ok, so I’m trying to get back into the blogging world after the whole moving thing… I feel like I finally have the apartment in order!! (Don’t worry, I have the Moving Story Post Coming Soon!!)  I feel like I’m kind of a stranger in Blog Land now, so I’m trying to change that by making 30 minutes every day to get around to everyone’s blogs!! :)

Now… on to my Friday Favorites!!

I RAN!!!!

I went out exploring my new town, looking for parks and hills and such… you know… the things that runner’s tend to get so excited and worked up about… “OH! That hill is at least a 10.9% incline out of a possible 5%!! I think I’ll do hill repeats today!!”  haha… no?  You’ve never said or thought something like that? lol ;)  Anyways… I started out just thinking I’d walk, but I felt so energized and excited to be outside that I ended up running part of it!!  Total: 5 miles with 2 RUNNING MILES!!!  **no knee pain yet, knock on wood!**

Yeah, btw… there are basically NO hills where we moved!! It’s the complete opposite of where we lived before!! Flat as a Pancake!!

Banana Bread

I’ve been craving this stuff and finally made a loaf!! So good!

Recipe I used is here

Yoga!

I told you all that Me and Routine are buds… I get more accomplished when I am busy!!  So… I made my life more busy!! HA! I joined 4 FOUR Yoga Challenges on Instagram! I feel like joining these things every month is really helping me grow in my yoga practice! It keeps me motivated and inspired!!  Some of my favorite poses in January so far:

  

Clockwise starting at Top Left: Flying Grasshopper, Pincha Mayurasana
(Forearm Stand), Dancer Pose, Goddess (#batmanasana) lol ;)

Now it’s your turn!! Tell me what some of your Friday Favorites are?!! :)

OMG… I Ran!!!!

OMG guys!!!! I totally ran!!! ok ok… before you get all excited, I must be honest and tell you that It wasn’t a lot…

Ok… I’ll be totally honest… it probably can’t even constitute as running…

Friday I went out for my usual walk outside and decided that my knee has been feeling great lately! Why not go for a run right?  I just needed it!  You know that itch that you get when you don’t run in forever!?  I has it! ;)

The picture below is why it really doesn’t count as running-running… just sort-of-running:

BUT… guess what?… I’m counting it!! :)  About 2 minutes total… but it’s more than 0!

My knee is feeling well still, but I’m kinda nervous to run more than a 10:1 minute walk/run ratio…

we shall see…

I’m totally excited though! :)  I can’t wait to get back to actually Running-Running… I’ve missed it! :)

 

Has an injury ever held you back from running?
How’d you get back to running?
What’s your best advice to running injury-free?

A Runner’s Perfect Date Night

I don’t know about you all, but for me, the perfect date night would be running, foam rolling together, and recovering with some Rocky Road ice cream and a cheese stick…

BUT, unfortunately I am still injured (update coming soon) and so the next perfect thing would be watching a movie about running!  If that sounds like the perfect night out to you, you’re in luck!!  This week, on Wednesday only,  Fathom Events is releasing The Spirit of the Marathon II: Rome in select theaters near you!  It’s a one night special event in select theaters nationwide (click here to check for a theater near you).

Here’s a snippet from the official website:

From the filmmakers who brought you the award-winning documentary Spirit of the Marathon comes the highly anticipated sequel: Spirit of the Marathon II.
Featuring the personal journeys of a new cast of seven athletes as they run the iconic streets of Rome, Italy, the film also includes interviews with marathon greats such as Stefano Baldini, Paula Radcliffe, Frank Shorter and many others.
An entirely new running adventure, Spirit of the Marathon II expands on the first film looking further into this legendary event, its significance in people's lives and ultimate impact on society.

I’ll be honest with you, I never saw the first Spirit of the Marathon, but I’ve heard great things and it’s on my wishlist!  I have heard that Spirit of the Marathon II was done a little differently than the first one though and have read on a couple blogs from people that got to see a sneak peek that it was truly inspirational!  I can’t wait to have a night out and watch it!!  If you’d like to watch the official trailer, I’ve embedded it below because that’s what friends do! ;) Enjoy!

 

 

 

Have you ever watched the first Spirit of the Marathon?

- Nope, but it’s on my wish list! :)  I’ve heard great things!

 

Are you going to the showing of Spirit of the Marathon II on Wednesday?

- Yeppers, I am!!  Totally excited about it too! :)

 

What would be your perfect Runner’s Date Night?

- See above! ;)

Weekly Roundup: June 3 – 9 (Bestowed Giveaway Winner Too)

Monday: .5mi in 5:51; BBC Day #9; 30 Day Fast Start – Upper & Lower (4); .5mi in 5:57; Foam Roll/Stretch
Tuesday: Rest/Foam Roll/Stretch/Stick
Wednesday: National Running Day! 3.23 miles (Mostly walking) @13:34/mi [43:50]
Thursday: Rest/Stick
Friday: Rest/Stick
Saturday: Rest/Hip&Knee Exercises/Stretch/Stick (Cousin’s Wedding)
Sunday: Rest/Stretch/Stick/Research

Total for Week = 4.23 miles 
Total for Month = 4.23 miles 
Total for Year =  78.8 miles

*** @=outside run (refers to pace) in=treadmill run (refers to minutes)

January 11.57 miles                                                       2011 329.45 miles
February 16.55 miles                                                      2012 178.67 miles
March 15.52 miles
April  25.93 miles
May  5 miles
June  4.23 miles

Last Week's Roundup

 

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

The winner of my Bestowed Box Giveaway is… *drumroll*….

Congratulations!!  I will be emailing you shortly! :)

 

Race Recap Roundup #Linkup

Don’t forget to post your Race Recaps to the Race Recap Roundup #Linkup!  It will be reset tomorrow but if you linked up between Friday and tonight, your Race Recap will automatically be resubmitted and stay up for next week too!

 

Blog Posts From The Week

Plankin' It Up Outside
Happy National Running Day!
Goals Update: May 2013

Registered Races

Unfortunately I have no plans to race at all this year… we shall see towards the second half, but I am just trying to get back into shape and figure out my knee pain!

Goals Update: May 2013

Alrighty… Happy June everyone!  Time for another goal update for the month of May!! But first, a couple reminders because I don’t want you to miss out!

- Don’t forget to enter my Bestowed box giveaway!  You have 1 day left to enter!

- Don’t forget to enter your race recaps on the Race Recap Roundup #linkup 

____________________________________________

 

GOAL #1:  Get rid of my knee pain and run at least 4 miles a month

                ~In the month of May I ran exactly 5 miles with a total of 74.57 miles for the year. 
                  Which means on average I ran 14.9 miles per month. My main goal is to rid
                  myself of my knee pain and I’ve been foamrolling, stretching, and using my stick
                  A LOT   - GOOD SO FAR

GOAL #2:  Graduate in May and land at least a part time interpreting job by June!

                ~I graduated May 10th!! :)  Working on the job part! ;) - IN PROGRESS

 

GOAL #3:  Finish all the WIPs (Works in Progress) I have on my knitting needles/crochet hooks (5 WIPS) and make something for myself this year! :)  - 4/6 COMPLETE

~Make something for myself this year “Honey Cowl” – COMPLETE 2/11/13

 

~ WIP #1:  “What a Hoot Scarf” – COMPLETE 1/5/13

~ WIP #2:  “Owl Vest for Bryce” – COMPLETE 3/8/13

~ WIP #3:  “Snowmen Ornaments” – COMPLETE 3/31/13

*These have been sitting around for a while (2008), they were my first crochet projects ever lol… since then I’ve crocheted at least 14 other things before finishing these lol… whoops!

~ WIP #4:  “Hannah’s Flower Power Rug” – IN PROGRESS

~WIP #5:  “Valentine Doily”

 

What are your goals for 2013?

What are your goals for this this month?

Reebok Spartan Race Entry Giveaway

Reebok Spartan Race:  Facebook / Twitter / Pinterest / Youtube

 

How many of you have run a mud run or obstacle course run and LOVED it?! I have not, but you better believe me it is on my bucket list!!  If you really want to find out if you have what it takes, the Reebok Spartan Race is for you!!! They don’t mess around!!  The Reebok Spartan Race was awarded the Best Obstacle Race by Outside Magazine in 2012.

 

So what exactly is the Reebok Spartan Race?  Glad you asked! ;) Directly from the website:

Simply, Spartan Race is the world’s leading obstacle race series. It’s an event of pure primitive craziness that you’ll never forget!
Spartan Race has:

• Races all over the globe!
• Different distances for different levels and styles of racing.
• A unique culture and community of athletes striving together to overcome any and everything

Spartan Race is on a mission to get you active, healthy, excited about change, and return to our ancient roots where running through woods, getting dirty, and facing adversity was part of everyday life. Our events are all about challenging today’s perception of normal. (source)

As stated above, they have different levels and styles of racing:

    
     The Spartan Sprint challenges a Spartan’s Agility
     with a muddy 3+ MILES / 15+ OBSTACLES race

 

    
     The Super Spartan tests a Spartan’s Endurance
     with an 8+ MILES / 20+ OBSTACLES battlefield

 

    
     The Spartan Beast is the ultimate Spartan’s race
     distance with 12+ MILES / 25+ OBSTACLES

 

    
     The Death Race is the ultimate challenge… so much so
     they needed a different webpage for this +48 hour adventure

Where can you run a Reebok Spartan Race? (click here to find a race near you!)

 

 

Why should you run a Reebok Spartan Race? (click here to find out)

 

What will you get for running the Reebok Spartan Race?

• Spartan Race T-Shirt
• Spartan Race Finisher Medal 
• Top 3 Male/Female finishers receive free entry into the next level of Spartan Race
• Bragging Rights!
• Click here to see more!
  

 

Think you have what it takes to be a Spartan?!  To enter the giveaway for a free Reebok Spartan Race entry to any race in the continental US
that is not already sold out, simply use the Rafflecopter form!  If you are
just so excited to run the Reebok Spartan Race now and want to go ahead and sign up for a race, you can click the picture below or this link here to get a personal promo coupon code for 15% off your race entry!

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway * Giveaway Rules:  ~ Giveaway will run from 5/21/13 through 5/29/13
                               ~ A winner will be chosen through Rafflecopter 5/30/13 and will be notified via email by 5/31/13
                               ~ The winner must respond 72 hours after they are notified or winnings will be forfeited
                               ~ Must be 14 years of age or older to enter
                               ~ The giveaway and promo coupon codes are only good for a race within the continental US
                               ~ The free race entry was provided by Reebok Spartan Race; I was not paid for this post